Luna Blackwood
Science & Oddities ReporterGrew up reading medical encyclopedias for fun. Now she writes about the beautiful, disgusting, terrifying machinery of the natural world.
Articles by Luna Blackwood
Archaeologists Just Found a 280-Year-Old Corpse Preserved in the Most Disturbing Way Possible
An 18th-century Austrian mummy was preserved using a bizarre rectal embalming technique involving wood chips and zinc chloride—the first known example of this method ever discovered.
Suicide Is Now America's 10th Leading Cause of Death—Ahead of COVID
Nearly 49,000 Americans died by suicide in 2024, making it the 10th leading cause of death for the first time and surpassing COVID-19, which ranked 4th just three years earlier.
You're Not Just Human—You're a Walking Bacterial Signature
Every person emits a unique cloud of microbes that researchers can use to identify them like a fingerprint. Your microbial identity precedes you into every room.
Your Stomach Acid Could Dissolve a Razor Blade—And You'd Probably Be Fine
Human stomach acid is potent enough to dissolve razor blade metal in hours. Yet swallowing one wouldn't kill you—if you're lucky.
The Mpemba Effect: Hot Water Freezes Faster Than Cold Water—And Science Still Doesn't Fully Explain Why
Boiling water can freeze faster than room-temperature water in a freezer. Physicists have known it for decades, but they still can't agree on why.
We've Been Wrong About Life. Scientists Just Found Entirely New Organisms Living Inside You.
Researchers discovered 'obelisks'—mysterious circular RNA loops with ~1kb genomes living in human gut bacteria—a previously unknown category of life hiding in data scientists had studied for years.
The Volcano That Kills You After It Stops Erupting
Mount Pinatubo's deadliest phase wasn't the eruption itself—it was what happened when people tried to clean up the ash. More than 300 died removing what the volcano left behind.
The Days You're Most Likely to Die Are Not Random—And It's Not Monday
CDC data reveals a startling weekly pattern: Tuesdays kill more people from disease, while weekends spike in violent deaths. Death is not evenly distributed across the calendar.
Your Heart Hates Mondays More Than You Do
Heart attacks spike 20-33% on Monday mornings, and it's not a coincidence. The culprit is a predictable physiological response to weekend disruption and returning stress.
You've Been Worrying About the Wrong Contact
Handshakes transmit twice as many germs as kisses. Your hands are filthy in ways your mouth simply isn't.